Ill. Panel Keeps Toxic Tort Jurisdiction Law Intact

By Celeste Bott

An Illinois appellate panel on Tuesday refused to revive a Republican-led challenge to a sweeping state law expanding the state's jurisdictional reach in toxic tort cases, saying it was barred from reviewing the Legislature's compliance with its own internal procedures but renewing concerns about being required to "turn a blind eye" to lawmakers' potential constitutional violations.

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Feds Granted More Time To Defend College Data Ask

By Carolyn Muyskens

A Massachusetts federal judge granted the Trump administration an opportunity to explain its rationale for fast-tracking a demand for detailed admissions data from U.S. colleges and universities.

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Trump Repeats Call To Remove Stay On Mail-In Ballot Order

By Katie Buehler

The Trump administration prodded the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to "promptly" lift a Massachusetts judge's order prohibiting the enforcement of new restrictions on mail-in ballots in 23 states and the District of Columbia in this year's midterm elections. 

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In 'Close' Call, 7th Circ. Backs FDIC In-House Enforcement

By Lauren Berg

In what the court called a "close and challenging call," the Seventh Circuit on Wednesday ruled the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. could use in-house proceedings to adjudicate claims of unsound banking practices, rejecting a former Illinois community bank chairman's contention that such proceedings violate his right to trial by jury.

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Senate Passes Bill Letting Feds Share Counterfeit Import Data

By Adam Lidgett

The U.S. Senate has passed a bipartisan bill aiming to combat counterfeit and pirated imports by allowing customs agents to share suspected counterfeit packaging and shipping information with intellectual property holders, e-commerce companies and goods transporters.

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Newrez Pays $15.5M Over Force-Placed Insurance Charges

By Gina Kim

Rithm Capital-owned mortgage servicer Newrez LLC will pay $15.5 million to resolve allegations that force-placed insurance charges were erroneously levied against customers, following a multistate mortgage loan servicing examination, according to an announcement Wednesday from the New York State Department of Financial Services.

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Chicago Funeral Home Sued Over 57 Mishandled Bodies

By Celeste Bott

A Chicago funeral home was hit with a proposed class action lawsuit in Illinois state court Tuesday alleging it mishandled, mislabeled and improperly stored roughly 57 bodies, leaving remains unrefrigerated and decomposing in allegedly "deplorable" conditions.

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'Core' Generics Leader Must Face Most AG Price-Fix Claims

By Bryan Koenig

A Connecticut federal judge ruled Wednesday that G&W Laboratories Inc. must face most price-fixing claims from dozens of state attorneys general targeting generic-drug makers, teeing the shuttered company up for trial as one of four companies deemed the "core group of leaders most responsible" for the conspiracy.

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Anti-DEI Group Asks FTC To Probe Law Fellowship Program

By Dorothy Atkins

An advocacy organization against diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives filed an antitrust complaint with the Federal Trade Commission Wednesday, accusing Sponsors for Educational Opportunity of engaging in anticompetitive practices by allegedly colluding on DEI metrics and falsely advertising its program.

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Baker Botts Atty Cleared Of Defamation In Inventor's Suit

By Carolina Bolado

A Florida federal judge on Thursday tossed a defamation claim against a Baker Botts LLP patent attorney after agreeing with a magistrate judge's conclusion that an inventor had not shown that the lawyer's comments to a reporter were defamatory.

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NYC Bar Committee Calls For Nationwide AI Rules Framework

By Andrea Keckley

A New York City Bar Association committee concluded in a policy paper published Wednesday that artificial intelligence tools "may assist legal work but cannot substitute for professional legal judgment," calling for a national framework to be built into the Model Rules of Professional Conduct governing its use.

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Trump Picks Ex-Arkansas SG, Walmart Lawyer For 8th Circ.

By Courtney Bublé

President Donald Trump has announced that he's looking to elevate Judge Lee Rudofsky of the Eastern District of Arkansas to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.

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State Farm Attys Admit Filing Motions Full Of AI Hallucinations

By Jonathan Capriel

A law firm representing State Farm has admitted that its pretrial motions contained citations to nonexistent cases and legal quotes, errors that were seemingly "hallucinations" generated by AI software designed for lawyers and caught by the plaintiff's attorneys as they prepared for trial in a California state court case about fire damage coverage.

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Brief

DOJ Fraud Division To Reach 500 Staffers This Month

By Courtney Bublé

By the end of the month, there will be about 500 attorneys and staff in the U.S. Department of Justice's new fraud division, with more to come as time goes on.

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JP Ward Attorney Exodus Delays Pa. Labor Trafficking Suit

By Matthew Santoni

A "staffing disruption" at the Pittsburgh law firm J.P. Ward & Associates led the firm to request a stay of a labor-trafficking case against hotels in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, after the firm was reduced to one attorney and two staff members, according to court filings.

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